A Different Game: The Sidelines
by Reichenbach
Summary: NOW COMPLETE! A companion piece to Charlene Edwards' A Different Game. (You might not understand it, if you haven't been reading that. CHARLENE'S FINALLY POSTING TO FF.NET--check out the NW section)Young Justice learns that Robin is accused of murder. R/R
1. The Discovery

Thanks to Charlene for letting me write an ff of her ff. This is getting complicated =] If you want to read her work, she'll be posting parts of ADG shortly on ff.net, or you can read it at kicking-n-byting and Bludhaven at Yahoo groups.  
  
I don't own. Hell, I don't even own this story line. The only thing I own are my Star Wars sheets, and I stole those off my brother.  
  
A Different Game: The Sidelines (1/3)  
(A companion piece to Charlene Edwards' A Different Game)  
**  
  
Bart rolled his eyes. Whenever Robin wasn't around, Superboy started yapping and running his mouth. And it got dumb to listen to after a while.  
  
"See, if he can't even be on time, then he shouldn't be the leader. If he's going to be all bla bla bla, and make us have these stupid meetings, he should at least show up for 'em." Superboy leaned back in his chair and propped his feet up on the table.   
  
Empress rolled her eyes. "Get your dirty feet off the table, mon." She stared at him until he complied. "Robin's a busy guy. He'll be here, or he'll call."   
  
The rest of Young Justice-Secret, Wonder Girl, Impulse and Lobo nodded in agreement. They knew Robin. He was a pain, but he was Mr. Responsible. They'd find out what was up.  
  
"Well," Impulse said, his inherent impatience growing. "If Robin does all the creepy Bat stuff at night, then he should be here for a Monday afternoon meeting. Right? Right. Maybe he's in trouble and he needs us to save him--" Bart leapt out of his seat and began dashing around the room, trying to encourage the others to run a rescue mission. They could do it. They knew all the stuff Robin taught them....   
  
"Bart, settle down," Wonder Girl urged. "He's like... fifteen minutes late. I say we give him another fifteen before we declare the meeting null and void, at which point we go to the mall."   
  
More heads nodded in agreement.   
  
With that being said, the group adjourned with the promise to reform in fifteen. Wonder Girl dashed to her room to check her e-mail, Superboy went for the fridge, Empress and Lobo stayed around the table--and Impulse was already gone.   
  
He started thinking about Riceroni and he wondered if the streets in San Francisco were made out of Riceroni like Kon said they were (but he might have just been joking, Bart couldn't tell sometimes). So he went to San Francisco. He met a nice homeless guy named Jake, bought a pretzel and tried to find Los Angeles to see if it was really a city made out of Angels, but he got lost, so he decided to just come home and watch TV.   
  
Bart Allen flipped through the channels as fast as the remote would let him, which wasn't fast enough for the little speedster. Maybe he could try to find L.A. again. It was either up and over a little, or down and over a little from San Francisco. He didn't know. He failed his last geography quiz.  
  
Finally, Bart Allen stopped on one of the news channel. He didn't know what it was, but it looked important for some reason. All those press people, and the court house. It also said "Gotham City, Live" at the bottom of the screen. Maybe this was what was holding Robin up. Wouldn't that be cool if he knew before everyone else?   
  
Bart was frustrated, this guy was just talking. But he was determined to figure out what was going on. He was going to kill Kon for that Riceronie thing. The moon wasn't made out of cheese, either...  
"GUYS!" Bart screamed. "GUYS!" Normally, Bart would have sped off and dragged everyone into the req room, but he couldn't move.   
  
"Bart, quit screaming!" Wonder Girl had flown into the room. Superboy came in next.   
  
The image was gone for the screen. "I... I know why Robin isn't here," he said, his mouth suddenly dry. He heard people talk before about everything... slowing down. And it did, for him. The second he saw that face, and heard that man's announcement on LNN.   
  
"Did he call in?" Empress asked.   
  
His whole body felt heavy and slow. It was great effort to lift his finger to the TV. "P-press conference. From Gotham. He... he's been arrested."   
  
There were gasps.   
  
"For... for murder."   
  
No one could breathe. They all simply crowded around the television, except for Bart, who was frozen at the sofa. Max kept telling him to slow down... now he'd come to a screeching halt.  
  
Someone had turned the volume up. The sound made the set vibrate and buzz. "It was determined this morning that Timothy Drake, also accused of the murder will be tried as an adult."   
  
"That's some other kid," Kon said quietly. "Alvin..."   
  
Bart had to give it tremendous push to get any sound out when he spoke. "His... his name's Tim. I knew that. And--and they had a picture of him. It's Robin." Bart had sort of kept that little secret from everyone. He had met Tim/Robin on a skiing trip a year before they'd formed Young Justice. Tim musta thought he'd forgotten. It was easier if Bart pretended that he didn't know. So he simply... didn't know.   
  
"....His father, industrialist Jack Drake, has no comment at this time."   
  
Yeah, Bart thought bitterly. What do you say to that accusation?   
  
"It sounds like this isn't a Robin thing," Empress... Anita said. "It sounds like they don't even know about that."   
  
They flashed a picture of a 'Richard Grayson' and explained that he was the adopted son of the man they were accused of killing. "That's that Nightwing guy," Bart said dully. Nightwing always came to the Parent-Teacher conferences, instead of the Bat. Bart kinda studied him. He was always trying to figure out why he was half-bat, and half cool guy like Robin, and how a guy could be both. So yeah. This Richard guy was completely and totally Nightwing. "I betcha that Wayne guy is Batman," he muttered, not fully comprehending what was coming out of his mouth.   
  
"Robin wouldn't." Secret said defensively. "He COULDN'T."  
  
"We gotta do something," Anita said, looking around for affirmation from the others.   
  
They all glanced at each other uncertainly, looking for guidance. Red Tornado was on the moon...Without Robin... they didn't have anyone.   
  
"We'll go bust him out," Superboy said, stepping forward.   
  
Lobo punched his fist. "Then we go bust the skulls of the guys who think our buddy Rob'd do that. We'll Frag 'em good."   
  
Superboy nodded. "We know Robin didn't do anything like that."   
  
A tendril of doubt crept into Bart's brain. "Robin was pretty pissed at him."   
  
They all turned and looked at Impulse. "WHAT?" came a simultaneous cry from the group.  
  
Superboy rushed to the defense of his friend. They had their problems, but this was ROBIN. You know, 'don't objectify women, Kon' Robin. Not... murder someone Robin. "Why would Robin have a beef with this Wayne guy?"   
  
"Well, we were kinda talking. About girls and stuff."   
  
Wonder Girl crossed her arms over her chest. "Robin killed this guy over a girl? Get real Bart."   
  
"No... like, it's a bunch of stuff. Robin was mad 'cause Batman told his girlfriend about his ID. He said it wasn't Batman's secret to give."   
  
"What's that gotta do with the rich guy?" Cassie asked.   
  
Impulse sighed. Why did he have to wait for the world to catch up to him? "The rich guy is Batman."   
  
"Nuh uh," Superboy said. "That rich guy's dumb. Batman's supposed to be smart. He's too smart to be...." Superboy scratched his head. "Oh. Never mind. Rob was THAT pissed?"   
  
Impulse shrugged. He hated when everyone stared at him like that. "I thought they kissed and made up." Bart thought about that image, but it didn't make him smile. "But when I talked to him. I dunno. He was major-mad. He said Batman always thought he was better than everyone else, and he liked to play god, and someone should put Batman in his place..."   
  
"But Robin was just mad, RIGHT?" Secret asked desperately.   
  
"Yeah, he was mad." Bart wouldn't know if he was 'just' mad though.   
  
Secret held firm. "Robin WOULDN'T do anything like that. Not even to Batman."   
  
"I dunno. The twerp knows like ninety ways to take down a guy," Superboy said with doubt.   
  
"Robin ain't ever fragged anyone."   
  
"He's not capable of it," Secret added.   
  
"I... I don't know," Wonder Girl said, stepping forward. "Arrowette left Young Justice cause of... that stuff. You know." Killing issues. "It.... it's in us. We're not immune." Cassandra HATED saying this, but she knew it needed to be said. "He... he did train with an assassin." She wouldn't tell how she knew that. Just that she knew.   
  
"AN ASSASIN?" Superboy gasped. "I'VE BEEN HAVING PIZZA NIGHT WITH AN ASSASIN?"   
  
"I just said he was TRAINED by an assassin. Briefly." Wonder Girl had run up briefly with Lady Shiva once. It had been one of her bragging rights. She'd trained their leader, she'd bragged.  
  
"So, like, what're we saying here?" Bart asked. "I... I mean... Maybe I'm wrong about the whole thing. Maybe that rich guy isn't Batman."   
  
Empress nodded and was the first to speak up. "Batman can't be dead, right?"   
  
"Right. He's like... better than Superman. He's like ALWAYS right, too. So he can't be dead," Impulse reasoned. "Like... we should ask Reddy. He'll know something, right?"   
  
"I got a better idea," Wonder Girl said, making her way to their main computer.   
  
"Wait!" Impulse protested. "Robin said not to use that line unless it was an emergency."   
  
"I think this is an emergency," Cassie answered.   
  
"Like... what if it gets mad, you know? Cause if you like call up just to say hi, is Batman OK, and he's ok, they're not gonna like that..." Kon stammered out.   
  
"NO!" Cassie cried out and slammed her fist against the table top, breaking it.   
  
"What?" Bart asked, not understanding.   
  
"Oracle's unavailable."   
  
Empress leaned in to look over Cassie's shoulder. "Except for emergencies, right?" That's the way it always worked.   
  
"COMPLETELY unavailable. Off-line. 'Redirect only absolute emergencies to JLA Watchtower'," Cassie read.  
  
"NOW what do we do?" Impulse asked.   
  
CONTINUED in PART 2  



	2. The Trial

Bart had been absolutely crushed after Young Justice's talk with Wonder Woman. After finding out that Oracle was offline, they'd called the moon, looking for some kind of reassurance and guidance. They hadn't gotten any. 

"We are doing everything within our power to resolve the situation in a satisfactory manner, but we can not interfere directly with the wheels of justice." they'd been told. Yuck. That sounded like a Superman speech or something. There's a guy who should have been a writer or something. 

Then they'd been ordered to stay out of Gotham, and out of contact with Robin. 

"WHY!?" Wonder Girl had cried in frustration. "He needs his friends! He needs SOMEONE!" 

"His family will be with him," Wonder Woman assured coolly. Like she was feeding them a line or something. "Any contact with Robin places his identity in danger, and that will only compound his troubles. The Bat and his people are NOT officially sanctioned by the local governments they operate under." 

"The Titans are already in Gotham!" Superboy yelled. 

"Dick Grayson has a known association with the Titans. Timothy Drake does not have that luxury. I'm sorry." 

Impulse rubbed his nose and wished the scratchy feeling in his eyes would go away. "So? We got secret identities and stuff." 

"SOME of you do. I'm sorry. This wasn't just my decision alone. The Justice League anticipated your reaction, and it was nearly unanimous that you remain out of this." 

He frowned, making a face. "This sucks." 

"I'm sorry." 

"Quit saying that!" Bart couldn't stop himself any more. He had to leave. As quick as that, he was gone, and home to Manchester. He needed to talk to Robin, to make sure Robin hadn't done it, and they weren't letting him. Well, Max was his guardian. If Max said it was OK, then it'd be OK, and he could do it, and who cared about the Justice League anyways? 

Bart was through the front door and calling Max's name before the door was even closed, and Bart had slammed it hard. "MAX!" 

As usual, the old guy was in the living room, with the TV off, reading a book. He just looked up at Bart like he couldn't possible understand why Bart was upset. 

"MaxyougottaputontheTV!" Bart helped him by turning on the TV. "YougottaseeandtellmewhattodocauseRobin'sintroubleandtheJusticeLeaguew ontletusdoanything!" 

Max put the book mark in his book and placed it on the sofa beside him and looked up at Bart, as if waiting for him to say something. Hadn't Bart said everything? 

"MAX!" 

"Yes, Bart?" 

"MAX! We gotta help Robin, and the Justice League won't let us." He stared at LNN reporter going on and and on and on? 

"Wally told me to tell you to stay out of it." 

Bart was fidgeting with agitation. "Max? I can't just sit here? No wait. That's what you'd want me to do. Just sit here while my friend gets? gets it. Like--like this. With the news people. And I can't even say didja do it?" 

"Do you think he did it?" 

"He was awfully mad." 

"Well, there you have it." 

Why was Max being so hard on Robin? "Robin WOULDN'T! Even if he's mad. He's Robin, y'know? And he wouldn't do that. And Wonder Woman's all bla bla bla, and we can't even talk to him, Max! They won't let us say hi, Robin." 

Max just kept sitting there. Why wasn't Max telling him what to do? Max should be saying to stay here, and stay still, and listen to the Justice League, or he should be saying that Bart should go, or? Or, well, SOMETHING! "MAX!" 

"Yes, Bart?" 

"WHATDOWEDO?" 

"What do you think you should do, Bart?" 

"IDUNNO. YOUHAVETATELLUS!" 

"Bart, I think this is a decision you need to make on your own. Why don't you go into your room and think about it. And whatever decision you make, I will support you-under the condition that it is a thought-out response to these events." Max rose and walked behind Bart, directing him into his room. 

"Max?" Bart asked quietly, once he was sitting on his bed. "Do you think Robin'd do that?" 

"Why don't you think about that, too?" And then Max closed the door. Leaving Bart alone with his thoughts. 

Bart sat and stared at the desk in his room. He stared at it long and hard, wondering what he should do. This only took about ten seconds, but it seemed forever. That was certainly thought out enough. In a streak of red and white, Impulse was gone. A second later than that, he was in Gotham. 

"I thought we told you to stay out of here." Geeze, he hadn't even stopped yet, and Wally was on his butt. 

"I came to see Robin." Bart stopped outside the courthouse. 

Dragging Impulse into an alley, Wally started yapping again. "Look, there isn't anything you can do for him. NOTHING. But if there is, we'll let you know." 

Bart thought about that. "You're just saying that so I'll go away." 

"For God's sakes, Bart...At least put some street clothes on. This is why we wanted you kids to stay away. You're just going to make this a bigger mess." 

In a blur, Impulse was gone, and Bart came back. "Better?" 

"Better. Look. We already sent Secret back to Happy Harbor. And I think Superman found a few friends of yours," he said, looking above Bart to the sky. 

Bart turned. Superman was joining them with Superboy and Wonder Girl in tow. He had them by the scruff of the neck, and he didn't look happy. 

"Hi guys!" Bart said, waving. Well, since he wasn't the only one here, that meant they'd be in less trouble, right? 

But boy did Superman look Max-mad right now. "What did we tell you kids?" 

Superboy shrugged off the Man of Steel. "We know what you said! And we think its full of crap, don't we, Wondy?" 

Wonder Girl fidgeted. "Um. Well, maybe crap is too harsh a word. But. Umm? Well, we didn't want to interfere. We just wanted to check up on him." 

"I'll be seeing them later. I will give you a report." 

Superboy made a face. Maybe it would stick like that, Bart thought. "But we want to see Robin NOW!" 

Wally frowned a scary Bat-face. "Stop calling him that. He's Tim Drake. And this is to protect his identity, which you guys are NOT doing if you go calling him Robin every two minutes. And none of that Alvin Draper crap either. That's all the prosecution needs-is to know Tim has an alias." 

Superboy looked crestfallen. "Then what're we supposed to do?" 

Superman glanced sternly to each of them. "Do what you were instructed to do before. Stay away from Gotham. The Justice League and the Titans are working on this. You know what they say about too many cooks." 

"Make a whole lot of food?" Impulse asked. 

Superboy elbowed him in the arm. Hard. 

"The point is-you all are disorganized at best, impulsive at worse," Impulse made a face when Superman said this. "And without Robin to keep you in order, there REALLY isn't anything you can do here that will be of ANY help to these boys." 

All three young heroes looked at the ground. So that was it. 

"We'll go back to Happy Harbor," Wonder Girl said dejectedly. "We wont be a bother any more." 

"Thank you," Superman said, the steel gone out of his voice. "There are some complications we just don't need right now." 

They nodded. 

"We're going now," Superboy said, defeated. "Sorry for bugging you, sir." 

Wonder Girl and Superboy flew up and away. Impulse stood there for a moment, looking at the Flash and the Man of Steel. "Yeah, sorry." 

And he too took off. 

They met up again several minutes later in Happy Harbor. Superboy and Wonder Girl had flown directly there. Impulse had remembered where Los Angeles was, and decided to ask the angels for help. 

* * * 

"We're on our own," Superboy said peevishly to the rest of Young Justice as Bart was coming in. 

Bart sat down at the table, staring at Robin's empty chair. "We are," he answered in agreement. There weren't any angels there. Not any real ones, at any rate. He felt funny asking the fake ones for help. 

"And it's not like we can go against them," Superboy continued on with authority. "Not with Superman and half the Titans taking up residence in Gotham. There's no way we could get in and out. Not even for a quick peek." 

Bart chewed on his cheek, then put his head on the table. He felt just awful. "We should be able to see. You know? Just one of us. To make sure he's all right. I hate the stupid Justice League. They're stupid." 

There were a lot of nods. 

"When do we start fragging the bastitchs who's messin' with our Robin?" 

Anita leaned forward. "We wont be 'fragging' anyone! The Justice League will just put us down!" She sat back, fuming. 

"Hey, 'Nita. Don't get huffy with me," Lobo replied. 

"I'm not. I'm mad at... at everyone else. Its not you guys. Its... its everything else." 

The room was quiet. Yes, they were all mad. They all wanted to do something, and they were frustrated by the fact the adults were blocking them. If they couldn't get into Gotham, how could they even try to clear Robin's name? Helplessness overcame them and they sat quietly, drowning in the sorrow it wrought. 

* * * 

Two weeks later, Young Justice (minus one Robin) sat huddled around their TV set. 

"They wont even show him any more!" Lobo complained. "I could CRUSH--" 

Anita's hand came down on his shoulder, before he could break the Television. "It won't do any good." 

"I hate all the stuff they're saying," Bart reiterated for the thirty-second time. 

"Why, because it might be true?" Superboy said. 

"NO!" Bart yelled. "It ISN'T true. And if you say it again? I'll..." 

"You'll WHAT?" Superboy said, standing. 

"I'll pound you into the ground." 

"I'd like to see you try." 

Wonder Girl slipped between them. "GUYS!" 

"Well LOOK!" Superboy screamed, throwing a hand at the TV. "The media is practically throwing the switch on the electric chair right now!" 

"The media isn't a judge and jury," Anita said icily. "Sit down, mon." 

"And they're going to get in front of a jury, and the jury's going to see what we see, and then what? HUH guys? Robin doesn't have anything in his stupid belt-o-tricks for this one." 

Bart folded his arms over his chest and looked icily at Superboy. "Robin will be fine." 

Kon actually stopped his tangent at the sound of the cold certainty in his friend's voice. 

"And if you say otherwise, then I WILL pound you. Everything's going to be fine." 

Everything seemed thick and sticky for a moment, no one wanted to move. Finally it was Superboy who interjected. "Who died and left YOU Batman?" 

Bart's yellow eyes almost burned a hole in Superboy. Finally, Superboy flinched. When he looked back, the speedster was gone. 

"The little Imp shoulda fragged you good," Lobo told Superboy. 

"Yeah, Kon, that was a really STUPID thing to say," Wonder Girl told him angrily. 

Kon spun around and glared at them. "Well? I was MAD! He makes me so mad!" 

Slowly, Cassie reached out a hand and placed it on his shoulder. "I know. We all are." All the anger was gone from her voice. Now it was just raw with pain. "We wish we could do something, and we can't." 

Kon saw that her eyes were red and wet with fresh tears. He put his unshaven cheek upon her hand and pulled Cassandra closer to him. "I'm sorry," he whispered. They embraced, each wetting the other's shoulder with their tears. 

* * * 

When Secret found him, Bart was outside the cave. He hadn't gotten far before he needed to stop and cry. He was sitting under a tree with his knees to his face, sobbing. 

"Kon just says things like that. It isn't his fault that he doesn't have any tact." 

Bart looked up at opaque earthen smoke that made up her form. "Suzy, all Kon does is say stuff. I can't listen to him any more." He dried his eyes quickly on his sleeve. Too bad salty tears left stains on his costume. Max'd have something to say about that. "I'm sorry. I'm a big baby." 

"You're not. You stood up to him." 

"He knows I can't pound him into the ground." 

"So? You still stood up to him." 

"I hate it, you know? The last time we got to see him on TV, he looked so worn out. All black under the eyes, and? I don't know. Thinner." 

She came to rest on the ground beside him. "He isn't doing well, Bart. I can't lie. But he's still hopeful. And we have to be too." 

"How do you know?" Bart asked, wondering if he wanted to know the answer. He'd learned a long time ago...Sometimes it was just better to not know some things. That was a Tupperware bowl he just didn't want to open. 

Suzy looked down at the grass. "I... I sort of see him." 

"How? Superman said--" 

"No one sees me. He doesn't see me. I just like to go in... and sit next to him at night." 

Bart felt giddy and sick at the same time. "How is he? For real?" 

"He... he has bad dreams sometimes. I try to quiet him. So his friend wont know I'm there. Because if he wakes? I'll have to go. And sometimes... he cries. I want to comfort him when he does, but I can't." 

Looking at his knees, Bart sighed. That wasn't what he wanted to hear. 

"But... but they're still hopeful, Bart. I guess what I'm trying to say is... they think Justice will prevail. We have to think that too. And... and we get sad and overwrought. And mad at each other and want to pound each other into the ground. But... but we can't lose hope. Because if we do, that's when we're really in trouble." 

* * * 

Bart tried to hold on to that thought when they were watching the verdicts come in. 

It had been a long few months. The team had spent a long time giving The JLA the cold shoulder, fighting with each other, trying to pull themselves together as a team, and remaining practically glued to the television for any news of their leader. Red Tornado knew better than to interfere. He let them handle this in their own way. It had been a way that had been wrought with hardship and hurt feelings, but he knew he'd done the right thing in leaving them to their own devices. 

Kon and Wonder Girl and somehow fallen to the front and had taken leadership of the group-together, though no one had deemed them such. They also always attempted to act in a manner which let others know they were only holding Robin's place for WHEN he returned. The others appeared to be fine with this. They didn't take on field missions often any more, and looked readily to their guidance. 

Anita and Lobo had made sure that Happy Harbor was always in shape. Mechanically, Lobo picked up Robin's slack. Empress made sure the usual monitoring duties were fulfilled. She wanted to be watching for Robin the same as the rest, but she also knew someone had to do it. It's what Robin would have wanted done in his absence. 

Suzie gave them regular updates as to Tim's condition. Usually, it left them all very quiet and round-eyed. Each day they became more acutely aware of their inability to help. Eventually their restlessness died away and they were overflowing with a silent numbness that filled their days and conquered there urge for action at her daily reports of Tim's diminishing spirits, thinning frame and hollowing eyes. 

Bart ever tired to counter these harrowing reports and the slanderous insinuations of the media with hopeful talk, trying to keep in mind Secret's words. When they'd all sit in silence after the trial coverage was done for the day, he'd coax them out of their lethargy with memories of the annoying things Robin used to say, or the good times they'd had together. 

By some insanity, they cut to a commercial before the verdicts were to be announced. "Remember our first camping trip with everyone?" he asked. "And we played truth or dare, and Robin had to take off his mask, and there was another one under there?" Bart smiled sadly. Soon enough the others were joining in and sharing some pleasure from the memory. "The little veins in Kon's forehead were sticking out. I thought they were going to pop. For sure." They were quiet again. The smiles slowly melted, like ice cubes on a fall afternoon. 

"Here it is," Wonder Girl said as she turned the volume up with the remote control. They had cut back to the court session. Her free hand grabbed Kon's, and held on to it for dear life. Anita and Lobo had found themselves strangely close, and Bart was doing all that he could to be there for Secret. He had hope in his heart that things would turn out OK. All the horrible things that they'd heard aside. He had to have hope. 

"...Not guilty." 

They bounced on the sofas and let out a gasp, no one dared to cheer. As the subsequent Not Guilty verdicts rolled in, their joyous mood rose and peeked as the final charges were read. It couldn't be. No. 

"The TV's broke!" Kon yelled. Wonder Girl did her best to restrain the angry Superboy. 

"Shut up and listen!" Suzy ordered. They were about to announce sentences. 

An edgy quiet took hold of the group. Like they were sitting on the blade of a knife. 

"Kon's right, its broke!" Lobo said when the sentences came in. Life without parole for Robin. Death for Nightwing. 

Unfortunately, Anita could not restrain Lobo the way Wonder Girl had restrained Kon. Lobo rose and lifted the TV and threw it into the wall. Then he picked up the pieces and threw them at the wall. He continued to pick up pieces of electronics and glass, hurling them over and over, until he was restrained. "We ain't letting them frag Robin like this, are we guys?" 

Looking around at each other, they all found themselves shaking their heads no. This couldn't go unanswered. They'd let the Justice League handle it to this point, and look where it had gotten their friend. 

"We need a plan," Kon said. 

"Yeah," Bart answered. "If we don't, the Stupid League of America will shut us down. Isn't going to happen this time. We have to help Rob." 

Anita couldn't listen. She couldn't help them plan. She needed to leave. "I gotta go." 

"You haveta help us," Kon told her urgently. 

"I have to go watch the monitors. I've been away from them too long already." Empress dashed from the room. She had to get away so they wouldn't see her cry. Not again, not over this. There'd been too much crying lately. 

"Hey!" Lobo cried out. "'Nita!" He looked around to the others. He wanted to plan new ways to frag the people who did this to Robin, but 'Nita couldn't go off alone. "I'm gonna go check on her. 'Fore she frags up the place." 

Before anyone could protest, he clomped off after them, his heavy boots shaking the floor as he went. When he found his Empress girl, her head was down on the table top, and she was crying. 

"Hey, you should come back. Fragging always makes me feel better. And we got lotsa bastitches to go after this time." Why wouldn't she stop crying? It made Lobo uncomfortable. "Come on. Fragin's good for ya." 

* * * 

"This isn't gonna work!" Bart cried out, slamming his hands down on the table top, tipping the radio they'd put there. "I can't outrun Flash!" He turned the radio right side up just a millisecond after it hit the tabletop. Stupid Kon had said he thought better with music playing. Right now Bart wanted to hit him with the thing. 

"You don't have to outrun him!" Kon said with equal force. "Just get him out of Gotham! I hear San Francisco's nice this time of year." 

Bart folded his arms over his chest. "Yeah," he said peevishly. "Maybe I can show him the Riceroni." 

"Pick your nose and threaten to wipe it on the Constitution, I don't care what you do! Just do it!" 

Bart's eyes narrowed. "Fine." 

"FINE," Kon shouted back. "Look, I have Superman, Wonder Girl has the Titans. We can do this, guys. Rob needs us to do this." 

"FINE! I said I'd do it, already, even if it IS a stupid plan." 

"OK, smarty-pants, what would YOU do?" 

"First of all, KON EL, Superman can kick your butt. YOU take Flash." 

"You think you're going to out-muscle Superman? You're as stupid as everyone thinks you are." 

Wonder Girl rose from her chair. "Guys! This isn't helping!" 

Bart gave Kon a look that would have scared the Bat. "I take Superman. You're not as strong as he is. But I have a chance with my speed. And I'm sure you can annoy the crap out of Flash enough with your tactile telekenboo-bob." 

"Telekinesis, thank you very much." 

"Whatever. Look. We're not going to beat our betters. We haveta go up against someone that doesn't have something we have." 

Wonder Girl looked around the table for protest. "Ok. Fine. Bart has a point. We do it his way. I have the Titans, though. Then Suzy goes in and frees them. Nice, simple, straight-forward, and that's that. There's only one thing we have to work out. What we do with--" 

"GUYS!" Anita called from the main computer room. 

"GUYS!" Came Lobo's voice now in chorus with Empress. "GUYS!" 

"Bart, can you?" Bart was gone, so there was no point in finishing her request. They all had a sick feeling. The last time anyone had called for them like that? well, it had been very, very bad news. 

"WHATISITNITA?" Bart asked in a rush once he was there. 

"We've got SERIOUS problems," she breathed. "They know about Tim." 

"WHAT?" 

"Look." 

Bart looked over her shoulder to the console that always seemed to hold Robin's attention the most when he was with Young Justice. It was blue, and there was a grid on it, but he didn't understand much more than that. As far as video games went, it was crappy. 

"This is Robin's YJ communicator. It hasn't changed location since all this started. It's remained inactive and at these coordinates. Now it's moving TOWARD Gotham." 

"CRAP!" Bart yelled. As if it could get worse than a life sentence. Now he was going to get in trouble for being a vigilante. Could they give him the death penalty for that? Bart didn't know, and he didn't want to find out. "GUYS!" 

Wonder Girl was the first one in. "I got good news!" She gushed from two feet off the floor. 

"Oh yeah? Well I got some really sucky news! They know about Robin." Bart reported, pointing to the little blip on the grid. 

"They've escaped! The radio said it happened like an hour ago." 

Bart's legs gave out on him. He crumbled to a cross-legged position on the floor. Robin was OK. The world had come to a halt again, you know the way 

"See, Rob's got it covered. It's going to be ok. That's why his communicator is moving. Hey. If Rob has his communicator, then we can talk to him!" 

She practically fell over Impulse in her effort to get to the console. Without thinking, she leapt into Anita's seat with her and dialed in the pass-number for Robin's Young Justice communicator. 

One ring. 

Bart held his breath. If this worked, and some evil government agent (sorry 'Nita's dad) didn't pick up instead, this would be the first time they heard their friend's voice in over two months. 

Two Rings. 

"I wanna talk to--" him too, Impulse thought. And he wanted to say it, but his voice was as weak as his knees. Could he handle talking to Robin? After all the evil things he'd thought early on? 

Three rings. 

"PICK UP!!" Superboy screamed, then turned his back to them. 

Four rings. 

It wasn't going to work. Robin couldn't talk, or the evil government agents had it, or... 

Half way through the fifth ring, the channel opened. 

CONTINUED IN A DIFFERENT GAME PART 4 C. 


	3. The Aftermath

Disclaimers in part 1. Many thanks to Charlene for letting me play in her world, as a beta and as a writer.  
  
A Different Game: Sidelines (3/3)  
  
**  
  
Six teenagers in street clothes stood outside Jack Drake's door, pushing past each other to be the one to ring the door bell.  
  
"Lemme do it!" Wonder Girl cried, flying a foot off the ground and pushing Superboy out of the way. "You're such a jerk, Kon!" she said as he grabbed his ankle and pulled him behind her.  
  
Bart thought about it for half a nanosecond, then vibrated right through them and run the door bell.  
  
"BART!" everyone cried out.  
  
He just shrugged.  
  
"Does it MATTER who rings the door bell?" Anita asked, folding her arms over her chest.  
  
"We could break the door down," Lobo answered impatiently.  
  
"No one's answering," Secret said quietly. "We should come back later."  
  
"No way!" the other kids cried out venomously.  
  
"I'm not leaving 'till I frag someone!" Lobo declared, just as the door opened.  
  
Jack Drake had opened the door, and being confronted with the 'top teen,' he leapt backwards three feet.  
  
Suddenly, everyone grew very still. Cassie flew out of the crow[e]d that was her peers, and landed just inside the doorway. "Uh. Mr. Drake. Uh. Is Tim?"  
  
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tim descending the stairs. Suddenly the mob of anxious teenagers rushed Jack Drake, pushed past him and flew at Tim with lightning speed. They'd gone so fast for their friend, they didn't even notice the damage they caused in getting there.  
  
The young man had just dragged himself out of bed, awakened by the sound of the bickering out front. His hair stuck up at funny angles and his Superman boxers and t-shirt were horribly wrinkled. It didn't matter much to his friends, who tackled him all the same. The entire group slid down the remaining five steps, and ended up in a heap on the floor, trying to hug him at once. The moment was broken up with Kon and Cassie batting each other's arms away in an effort to get more of Tim, and also by Jack Drake staring down at the heap of heroes.  
  
"Guys?" Tim said cautiously, staring up at his father.  
  
"SupermansaidwecouldseeyouonSaturdaybutwewern'twaitingthatlongsowetoldhimtog oshoveitandthenwecamehere," Bart explained.  
  
Superboy chimed in. "We were gonna come last night but Batgirl threatened to hurt us if we woke you up, and she's scary and really, really hot so we didn't. But we're here now," he said proudly.  
  
"What?" Jack asked, not understanding at all  
  
Tim groaned, then ruffled the speedster's hair. "Am I going to be getting a phone call from the Justice League about this?" the LAST thing he wanted right now was to hear about all the bad things his team had done in his absence.  
  
"Naw," Lobo said. "We've been ticking off the Justice League of Stupidity since you went away. You'da got lotsa phone calls by now."  
  
Tim bit his lip, a stray tear staining his cheek. His dad was giving him a terrible look of accusation. "Uh. Lobo? That's not nice. And um. Dad. these're my. friends. Young Justice."  
  
For the first time, they noticed they'd destroyed the railing in their effort to get to Tim, when Jack picked up one of the rails. "We'llfixitallup!" Bart promised.  
  
"That's.ok," Jack said, trying to take everything in. Yesterday had been a long and difficult day, trying to accept his new perception of his son, and the life the boy had chosen for himself.  
  
"We were gonna break you out, but you beat us to it," Kon said proudly, pulling Tim to his feet. "You're such a show-off."  
  
"Yeah. Uh. thanks," Tim said, turning a little red. "Um. it's the thought that counts. I think."  
  
Dana came into the room, watching the young people dust the wood chips off themselves. She took the broken piece of wood out of her husband's hand. "Let's let them catch up," she said quietly.  
  
"They broke--"  
  
"We break stuff all the time!" Bart volunteered. Superboy smacked him upside the head.  
  
"I never liked that railing anyways," Dana said reassuringly, tugging at her husband's arm.  
  
"We wanted to help," Anita said as Jack was leaving. "But--we didn't know what we could do. The Justice League wouldn't let us."  
  
Tim gave her a smile and squeezed her shoulder, trying not to think of the broken banister. "I don't think there was anything you COULD do."  
  
"We're glad you're safe and home and cleared and everything. We knew you didn't do it." Everyone nodded vigorously to Cassie's comment.  
  
"Thanks, guys. It was kinda lonely. But hey. It's all over, right?" Tim gave a hopeful smile to his friends. Everyone but Bart returned an equally hopeful grin.  
  
They went into his living room. Looking around, the girls sat on the sofa. The TV was way bigger than they were used to, and he had 'toys' none of them had seen in real-life. Just in commercials. A twelve DVD changer was just more movie watching power than one man needed, Superboy decided. And why did Tim still look a little off-center?  
  
"We painted the hall blue," Lobo said "But Stupid-boy got the wrong paint fer the second coat, and it looks like rain clouds."  
  
"Hey! Same color, different brand!"  
  
"Guys!" Tim said, stepping between them. "I gotta headache. Something about you guys jumping on me and dragging me down the steps."  
  
Superboy chuckled. "Remember when the Super-Cycle dragged you half-across Vermont, and it burned a hole in your cape? That was so cool." Ok, so he was struggling here.  
  
"It's ok, guys," Tim said finally. "I'm just glad you're here. I know a lot's happened. And we don't have to talk about it. That's ok." Tim really wasn't ready just yet.  
  
"So what do we do?" Anita asked finally. It was what they were all thinking.  
  
"Umm. play Monopoly?" Tim asked.  
  
"Play Monopoly?" Superboy asked. He'd been looking for some way to bridge the now awkward reunion, but he wasn't sure that Monopoly was the way to do it. Robin had never struck him as a? Monopoly kind of guy. He was more of a 'shooting razors, catching arrows for a good time' kinda guy. "Uh-- that's kinda weird."  
  
"If I play one more card game, I'm gonna poke my own eyes out."  
  
They all stared at him for a moment. "Pinnochio's a real boy!" Superboy said finally, tackling his friend and giving his already afflicted hair massive noogies.  
  
* * *  
  
"Bart HAS to be cheating!" Superboy said, handing over his cards. He'd just gone bankrupt.  
  
"You think EVERYONE who's beating you is cheating!" Wonder Girl said, reorganizing the bank.  
  
"Well, you ARE all cheaters!"  
  
"The Top Teen don't cheat!" Lobo got up from his chair in the dining room to pound Superboy.  
  
"Guys!" Tim said, raising his hands. "Kon, you're just really bad at Monopoloy," he said with humor. "And Lobo? Ah, never mind. It's good to fight with you guys again."  
  
"We're not fighting!" Kon said dejectedly.  
  
Tim shook his head, almost nostalgically and laughed.  
  
Superboy put his head on the table and moaned. "I am undone!"  
  
"Kon, you REALLY need to stop watching Masterpiece Theatre," Cassie told him.  
  
Dana, who they knew was Tim's step-mom came into the room with a plate of cookies. "Will you marry me?" Kon asked, flirtatiously.  
  
Tim turned a little red.  
  
"Just rinse off the plate when you're done," she told them.  
  
He leaned closer to her, batting his black eyelashes. "I gotta cut down on the married women. Superman's mom told me the same thing. Do you have a cute younger sister?"  
  
Tim was trying really hard not to laugh, even for his embarrassment. "Kon, leave her alone! Don't mind him, Dana. He gets off by being turned down by pretty ladies."  
  
Kon clutched his chest. "I am wounded!  
  
"WAY too much Masterpiece Theatre," Cassie confirmed.  
  
Dana nodded indulgently and left.  
  
"He's been like totally addicted to it," Cassie told Tim. "It comes on when- uh--CourtWatch is in infomercials."  
  
"You guys were watching?" Tim asked cautiously. They'd been avoiding this all afternoon.  
  
"Yeah. All of it," she informed him.  
  
Tim looked down, suddenly recounting his hundred dollar bills. They were surprised when Tim grew reticent suddenly. He bit his cheek. It wasn't really like their leader to be so? unsure of himself.  
  
Looking around, the speedster in the group saw the strain. "Hey, uh. like. someone stole one of the pink ones off of me," Bart said. "I think it was Lobo. Robin, make him give it back."  
  
Everyone leaned back in their chairs, the tensions diffused.  
  
"He doesn't even know what the denominations of money are," Superboy protested half-heartedly. "How can he POSSIBLY have hotels on all of his properties."  
  
"Because I don't spend all my money on girly magazines," Bart said smartly. For the sake of the situation, he stuck out his tongue and wiggled it around.  
  
"Its Monopoly! You can't buy girly magazines!" Wonder Girl gave him a dirty look. "not that I'd buy girly magazines if I had. never mind." He reached for the tray of cookies. "Chocolate chips, anyone?"  
  
Tim looked around the table at his friends. Things had changed for them. Bart hadn't turned on the super speed since they started playing. Kon was placing less effort into his ego. Wonder Girl kept giving everyone warning looks, and Suzy kept biting her lip, as though there were something she wanted to admit to, but didn't dare. And Anita and Lobo were like. mushy together. Even though they were their usual bickering selves, there was a sort of sedate quality to them all.  
  
"So. uh. wanna do some training tomorrow?" Tim asked finally. He didn't know what else to do.  
  
Everyone perked up. "YES!" was the general cry from everyone. There was relief in their voices, as if they couldn't wait to get back to something normal.  
  
"If I would have known it'd take me getting arrested to get you guys excited about training, I'da tried it a long time ago." He'd meant it humorously, but as soon as it escaped his lips, he knew he probably shouldn't have said it. Suddenly, they were all staring at the Monopoly board. "Hey, come on, guys. It was a joke."  
  
"Robin-- that's the LAST thing we wanted," Cassie said. "I know we're pains in the butts, and not the greatest team in the world, and lately the Justice League is ready to ship us to Zancara Five just to get rid of us, but, if we could have done anything?"  
  
"You guys couldn't," he reassured her. "None of you guys could. Don't worry about it." He suspected they were as miserable on the inside as he was.  
  
"We tried," Kon admitted. "We even came to Gotham, and the stupid Justice League wouldn't let us," he said dejectedly. "They got to be here, and we didn't. I? I hate it, and I'm sorry."  
  
"I know, guys. And you did the right thing, listening to them, even if you didn't want to. I'm proud of you all." But what had the Justice League gained in not even telling Tim that his friends had WANTED to be there for him? He'd felt so abandoned-and that wasn't even the case. "Even Batman'd be proud of you guys working to keep the secret."  
  
Bart looked to his left, then to his right, then asked, "so, uh, how is he?"  
  
Tim smiled. "Glad to be back in Gotham."  
  
"We shoulda busted you out earlier!" Lobo protested suddenly. "We shoulda fragged--" Anita's hand grabbed his arm, stopping him.  
  
"Lobo--trust me. None of us thought it'd turn out like that." He looked at Bart's stacks of money. Bart had organized them about thirty-seven times since he started playing, and at normal speed. Every bill was going in the same direction, they were in nice neat piles on the table. "Look, can we just declare Bart the winner and like, go to a movie?"  
  
"Only if you get me a date with Batgirl," Kon chimed in with a forced grin. Avoidance seemed to be an acceptable tactic at this point.  
  
"Robin isn't a dating service, Kon." Wonder Girl responded tursely.  
  
"But she's HOT! And she's WAY hotter than you-hey Rob! Guess what? I saw Cassie naked in the--" he didn't get the rest of the sentence out. Wonder Girl shot out of her seat and chased after Superboy who was out of his chair even quicker and flying through the house.  
  
"Hey! Guys! No flying in the house! My dad's gonna kill--" there was a crash in the hall. "I'm never inviting you guys over again!"  
  
"You didn't invite us over," Anita reminded him.  
  
Tim rubbed a hand over his eyes, then leapt to his feet in pursuit. "Just stay here, guys!" The last thing he needed was all of Young Justice running around his house. Especially Bart. 'We break stuff all the time!' the speedster had declared to Tim's father. Yesterday's explanation to his father about his? nocturnal activities had been stressful to say the least. He didn't need to follow that up by Young Justice destroying his house.  
  
It didn't take detective skills to follow his two empowered friends. He just followed the wreckage. His dad was near the study door, looking a little angry. "Sorry! Dad, I'll make 'em clean it up!" He pushed the door opened, and stopped in his tracks, staring at the big hole in the French doors on the other end of the room. "KON! CASSIE!" he ground out, but he knew they were too far away for him to hear. "They're not going to clean it up," Tim muttered to his father. "Cause I'm going to destroy them."  
  
"They break things ALL the time?" his father questioned.  
  
"Dad--I'm sorry. Superboy said something stupid and Wonder Girl went off to bash his head in." He sighed. "You should see how many walls we have to repair at Happy Harbor when those two get started. But, well, yeah. I guess they do break things all the time." He broke so much stuff himself, in fact, he really didn't think about how much damage his 'kind' did until it was inflicted upon his house-an obvious 'breakage free' zone.  
  
"We're sorry, Mr. Drake," Anita said behind him. He thought he'd told them all to stay put?  
  
"We can go frag 'em for ya," Lobo offered.  
  
Tim turned around. Thankfully it was just Anita and Lobo. Boy, were those two weird together, Tim thought. "Uh, you wanna take the Super Cycle and hunt them down before they kill each other?"  
  
They nodded, opening the broken French doors and jumping off the patio.  
  
"See? I told you before," Jack said. "I don't like the company you keep."  
  
"They're not bad. They just--let's face it. Costumed types break a lot of stuff."  
  
"You're not going to start breaking things in my house," Jack said with authority. He needed to have some grasp-some control on the situation.  
  
"Dad, I'm the same kid," Tim assured his father. "I didn't break stuff before, and I won't break stuff now. TRUST me, I don't think we're going to be hanging out a lot here."  
  
Jack glared at his son, trying hard to understand. But after everything that had happened, could he really? "You'd rather hang out in a secret club house."  
  
"Da-ad! No! I think we need to hang out some place mostly constructed of metal." This way, if they go crashing through it, it'll at least hurt 'em or something. "But the good news is, they're fixing stuff without me having to tell them now." Not that I've been around to tell them. "They're getting better," Tim said hopefully.  
  
"And what, pray tell, do these over-powered? CHILDREN get from having you in their company?"  
  
Bart and Suzie were in the study with them half a second later. She hovered slightly above Bart. The fact that Jack could see through her was a bit disturbing, but he tried not to let it show. "He's our leader," Suzie explained.  
  
"Trust me. We like having him around better than not having him around, cause he's bossy, and he's a know-it-all, and sometimes, when you're doing something fun, he tells you to stop," Bart answered calmly.  
  
"Uh, thanks, Impulse," Tim said peevishly.  
  
"It's a good thing," Bart said simply. "Cause he's always right."  
  
"I see," Jack said, not convinced.  
  
"And he comes up with all the good plans," Bart said, getting excited. "We've been really lacking good plans since you went away. Can you believe Kon wanted to take on Superman all by himself because he thought it was a good idea? See, good thing you escaped all by yourself, cause your plans are better than ours." Bart nodded proudly.  
  
"And what type of plans does my son come up with?"  
  
"Well, when we were on Apkolyps--that's the hell planet-he--"  
  
Tim made a gesture for Bart to stop.  
  
"Ok, that wasn't a good story. Once, the Super Cycle wigged out when we were in China, and it went under ground and he?"  
  
Tim covered his eyes with his hands.  
  
Bart's face turned thoughtful. He was trying. Really. "I KNOW I can tell this one. Once, me and Superboy were stuck in No Man's Land?"  
  
Tim's head shook.  
  
"Never mind. Robin comes up with real good plans." Bart frowned, and looking to his friend with sympathy, sorry he couldn't be more help. He wasn't used to having parents who didn't know about all the weird stuff they did. It was harder for Bart to be normal than to be Impulse in a lot of ways.  
  
"Impulse, is it?" Jack Drake asked, a false reassurance entering his voice.  
  
"Yeah!"  
  
"Would you and, um, Suzan?"  
  
"Suzie."  
  
"Suzie leave me and my son for a moment?"  
  
Bart nodded. "We'll go clean up the game. Then we're going to a movie."  
  
"We'll see about the movie," Jack said indulgently.  
  
"Come on, Impulse." Suzie began floating down the hall. Tim was kind of disappointed when Bart followed, not giving his dad a hard time-and leaving Tim alone with his dad.  
  
"I think there's a lot you still have to tell me."  
  
"Dad--I mean? I told you a lot of stuff when Bruce and Dick left last night."  
  
"What about the Hell planet, and China, and you never gave me a decent explanation of No Man's Land?" He folded his arms over his chest and looked down. His son had spent the last several years tearing his heart out. Surely he didn't think that this would be fixed with one long talk on Robin's Greatest Hits?  
  
"Dad, I'm not sure it's important," Tim said, feeling sick.  
  
Jack stared at the gaping hole in his glass doors. "Oh, I think it's important."  
  
Tim frowned, the irony of his life etched in his features."Well, uh, where should I start? The mini-yetis, the snake people, my alcoholic room mate, Killer Crock repeatedly trying to eat me, King Snake repeatedly trying to kill me, taking down the Joker all by myself, taking back Gotham during No Man's Land.. facing Suzie's brother who tried to kill her and that's how she ended up all transparent, but her brother's a meta too and would really like to kill all of Young Justice? Two Face, Two Face, Two Face.. an incident involving the dean of Brentwood's dog, saving your wedding rehearsal from the spirit of the lady in that stupid necklace you gave Dana.. That is the SHORT version of the last three and a half years of my life."  
  
"Don't cop an attitude with me, young man."  
  
"Dad, all the stuff I've been through could fill VOLUMES. There is NO short explanation. And yeah, I gave you the 'look at my accomplishments' version last night. But there was dangerous stuff. And other places, and other planets.. Sometimes, if the world's about to end, and it's not a school night, I get to go with Batman on a Justice League mission." Tim laughed. "My life is absurd. The sooner you realize that, the easier it'll be to cope with all of it." He hoped that'd work for himself.  
  
Jack let out a bit of a laugh too. This whole thing was.. absurd. It was surreal. "I WISH you'd have been involved with the drugs or something. That is something I can do something about. There really isn't anything I can do about these.. people, is there?" He lifted a hand to the broken glass.  
  
"Well. uh, they are kind of a force of nature. They'll grow on you, I promise."  
  
His father snorted disbelievingly.  
  
"I mean it. Get to know them. They're good people. When they're not, well, it was an awkward afternoon."  
  
"So instead of.. talking about things, they break things?"  
  
"That'd be a good summary." Tim pinched the bridge of his nose. "Can we just--take this slowly?"  
  
"You have this whole other existence I've not been privy to, and I'm trying to be patient. I'm trying to take it in."  
  
Tim scowled at his father. He knew the way things REALLY were. "You're trying to get me to quit every fifth word out of your mouth."  
  
"Timothy?"  
  
Tim rubbed his eyes. "I'm sorry. That wasn't fair. I'm trying to be fair. I'm trying to be patient."  
  
"I am trying to be patient."  
  
"And it's just not working," Tim said weakly. "Is it?"  
  
Jack sighed and walked towards his desk to call someone to fix the glass before it got too late. A carpenter had already given him an estimate on the banister in the hall. "Go spend time with your friends. We'll try this again later."  
  
Tim nodded, considering himself extremely lucky. Things could have gone a lot, lot worse. After every encounter with his father since last night he'd been considering each escape both narrow and a blessing.  
  
* * *  
  
"So, uh, you both didn't have to come up here to help me put the game away." Tim placed it on his shelf, under Clue and Chess.  
  
"We wanted to talk to you," Secret told him.  
  
"About?"  
  
Impulse fidgeted. "Umm.. stuff."  
  
He turned around to face them. "Guys, I'm fine."  
  
"Are you sure, Robin? A lot has happened," Secret pointed out.  
  
Tim sat down on the bed and gave his best smile. "Sure. Hey, guys. That was my longest vacation in a while. And rescuing Batman-well, got to go to a nice tropical country and kick some butt. It's cool."  
  
"Tim," Secret began. "I was there every night," She confessed. "I know how worried you were-- how sometimes you cried."  
  
Tim's features suddenly grew hard and his lips pressed together. His gaze turned downward and for a moment, they thought he looked uncannily like Batman.  
  
"Tim--Robin. We didn't mean to make you mad," Bart said.  
  
From his seat on the bed, Tim glared at them. "You--you were SPYING on me?"  
  
"I-I wanted to be there for you," Suzie said sadly. "It was the only way. And when you cried, I wanted to comfort you, but? I couldn't. Please, don't be mad."  
  
Tim's shoulders sank. "I'm sorry. It's? not you." He was upset that she'd seen him so emotionally weak. "It--it was rough." There. He'd admitted it. And the world HADN'T come to an end. "Dick's friends came for him, and none of mine came. And I love Superman. He was there every day. But he never even said you guys WANTED to see me, much less that they wouldn't let it."  
  
"I'm so sorry," Suzie said sympathetically. She knew what it was like to be imprisoned and alone.  
  
"It's not your fault," he said darkly, then attempted to cheer himself up again. "But hey. It's over now, right?"  
  
"Uh.. Secret?" Impulse asked finally.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
How did he say this in a way that was all polite and stuff? "Can you like.. go make sure everyone's not killing each other?" Sometimes, they did that.  
  
Secret nodded, knowing what Impulse was asking. Tim wouldn't talk with her there. She'd seen the way he'd been, and he was somehow embarrassed by that. Right now, he needed to talk. Later they could work on convincing him that they were his friend-no matter what.  
  
"Bye, Tim. I'll see you later," she promised.  
  
She dissipated into mist and slid out the crack in his window. The sand colored gas floated upward and away.  
  
"So, you got me here. What do you want?" Tim hated how he sounded, but he couldn't help it.  
  
"To-ouchy. Max'd put you down for a nap, if you talked to him like that." He HATED when Max made him take a nap. Maybe he should tie Robin to the bed and make him sleep. Unlike Impulse, Robin couldn't vibrate out of the restraints.  
  
Tim ran a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry. Just. I don't like talking about it."  
  
"Then you need to talk about it more." That sounded very Max-like and grownup.  
  
"Look it wasn't that bad! So I got upset and lonely sometimes. Everything's OK."  
  
Bart got angry. He wasn't angry often, so it caught both of them off guard. "Look, things WERN'T ok, ok? They weren't OK for any of us, and least of all you. So don't go lying to me, or to anyone else to make YOURSELF feel better."  
  
Tim scowled and turned away from his friend. Why was Impulse DOING this to him? "Bart, you weren't there. Dick and me were ok. We've done undercover before. It wasn't any different that that. Dick's even been IN Blackgate before."  
  
Bart dared to grab Tim's shoulder and gently pull him around so they were face to face. "I'm just saying this for your own good. Don't go all into denial and stuff."  
  
Tim turned to completely face him, and stared into the boy's amber eyes with anger-fueled intensity. "I'm not in denial. There's nothing to deny. We were convicted. Now it's over. Back to normal time."  
  
Bart was practically pleading. "You can pretend stuff didn't happen, and you can pretend you didn't... think stuff, but you did. And stuff doesn't go back to normal. If you do that, then you're just pretending. Robin always faced things head-on." It distressed him to see his friend shirking the issue. "I mean... we know stuff about you now, so you can't go being all dark and mysterious. It doesn't work when we've seen you in your underwear. And after we broke half your dad's house. What I'm saying is... its different now."  
  
"I'll catch up."  
  
Tim's friend sighed. This wasn't coming out right. In a fit of frustration, he began a new tactic: take away Tim's excuses. "Look. I'll catch you up. We FINALLY got the bathtub back because Superboy moved out. Anita and Lobo are going out.."  
  
"They're WHAT?" Tim was angry. Not with his friends, but with the world.  
  
"Totally. That's how we found out I could hypnotize people just by reading a book about it. Books got all the answers." Like to his school work and stuff. Who'da guessed. "So. Yeah. Superboy got his own apartment, and I kissed a girl."  
  
"That last part you made up," Tim said with false humor.  
  
Bart shook his head no. "Carol. Right before? Well. Yeah. She went away. And she's not coming back." Sometimes, Bart thought it'd be less painful if she had died. It was cruel--but he thought it. Bart just wished he could keep his thoughts entirely at bay sometimes. "So my friends're like--she just moved, and we're upset too. But, well, they don't know it was more than that."  
  
"I'm sorry," Tim said solemnly. "I missed everything."  
  
"I didn't want to be Impulse any more for a while. It wasn't fun any more. You were gone, and Carol was gone. And the weird thing is, Max just let me do what I wanted. He kept saying that as long as I thought things out, he'd support me. When ya gotta stop and think, and there're so many things to think about it--you kinda slow down."  
  
Tim nodded, not really sure what his friend was saying. "Well, I kinda noticed you weren't. all.you know. Some of the time."  
  
"That's why I like ya. Yer the only one who noticed." Bart gave an honest smile of appreciation. "So what I'm saying is some stuff was good, and some stuff was bad."  
  
There was a quiet that overcame them as Bart's words settled in. "Did you really watch the trial?" Tim asked finally. He had to know. Deep inside, he felt knots twisting around whenever he thought about Young Justice seeing him like that.  
  
"Yeah," Bart said quietly. "All of it."  
  
"Why?"  
  
Bart shrugged. "Because they wouldn't let us be there. The first day? We came to Gotham, and the stupid Justice League made us go home."  
  
"They wouldn't?? You WANTED to be there?" That familiar twisting in his stomach had begun again, and he couldn't pinpoint it's cause. He'd spent months with his stomach in knots like this. Why was it happening now that he was out and free? Besides this being an..uncomfortable conversation. It was over. Wasn't it?  
  
"Yeah. We got there, and they totally sent us back. Wally and Superman are the most stupid."  
  
Tim's heart was now racing in addition to the ulcer forming in his stomach. "YOU CAME?"  
  
"Yeah. And that's why Wally and Superman--"  
  
"They didn't tell me. They didn't even say you'd come."  
  
"Maybe they didn't want to make you feel bad."  
  
"Well, THAT was effective!" Tim could scream. He'd been so alone there, every single night, when all anyone had to do was open their mouths!  
  
He got up and started pacing. Bart watched for a few moments. It was difficult. He knew Tim was hurt, but he didn't know how to fix it. "That's why they're stupid. Especially Superman with his big blue S, and telling us bla, bla, bla all the time."  
  
"Superman did help us in the end." Tim stopped pacing and stared out the window. Why were things always so complicated?  
  
"Fine, then Wally's the most stupid. He was always the most stupid."  
  
"Wally helped us too. He dug up what we thought was Bruce's grave."  
  
Bart winced. "Maybe.. Wally's less stupid too."  
  
"Maybe."  
  
There was more silence. The afternoon sun had begun creeping lower in the sky, making Tim's room bright and warm.  
  
Finally, Bart spoke. "Did you really--Did you open the coffin?" His voice was quiet with a sort of sad awe.  
  
"Dick did. He wouldn't let me. Like I needed protecting or something," Tim answered bitterly.  
  
"Well, sometimes it's nice to be protected," Bart said in what he thought was his most hopeful voice. "Like a girl doesn't NEED you to hold a door, but they like it a lot when you do."  
  
"Maybe," Tim answered, sitting down again next to Bart. The problem was, the protecting had happened too little too late. After everything that had happened? And suddenly they didn't want him to look?  
  
Letting his elbows rest on his legs, Tim sighed. "It means a lot to me. That you guys stuck by me."  
  
"You're our leader," Bart said.  
  
Tim could tell he was hiding something, but didn't press. He wasn't in a position to press anyone about anything right now.  
  
"I'm outta school for the rest of the year," Tim finally admitted. "I'm gonna be home schooled. Don't think I can go back there. None of my so- called 'friends' visited me. And if I go back, they're just going to be talking about me."  
  
"People're stupid," Bart told him in all honesty. "You got like three people who're your friends, and the rest of the school wants to beat you up. Well, that's just me. I don't know about you."  
  
Tim frowned even more harshly than he had been before. "You're pretty close. I told my dad I wouldn't go back and listen to them whispering about me." He hated the idea of that. Cleaning out his stuff at Brentwood Academy had been difficult enough. That alone had been TOO LONG spent in the presence of THOSE PEOPLE.  
  
"Well, we could get your guys that wanna beat you up and my guys who wanna beat me up together and let them duke it out. Like WWF, only real. Who's gonna teach you? Your dad?"  
  
"Alfred is."  
  
"Wait, who's Alfred?" Sometimes, Bart couldn't keep everyone straight.  
  
"He home-schooled Bruce."  
  
Bart's amber eyes grew wide in awe. "Wow. He must be a million years old." Cause the Bat had like, lived forever, right?  
  
Tim stared wide-eyed at Bart. "Don't EVER say that out loud. You think Batman's really the boss of us -- you're wrong. Alfred is BATMAN'S boss."  
  
"WOW! How old is he?" Bart looked to his friend with wide, enraptured eyes.  
  
"Like sixty-something," Tim ventured a guess. Now that he thought about it, he really DIDN'T know how Alfred was. Weird.  
  
"That's still ancient. Maybe more ancient than Max. And Wally says that Max sleeps in Formaldehyde." Bart knew what that was from science class. See, he wasn't just a pretty face. He could pay attention too. Sometimes.  
  
Bart noticed Tim was smiling. "Oh boy, you're so funny Bart. I missed ya."  
  
"I missed ya too," he replied in an awkward guy moment. "What I had to do, since you weren't there, is just think of all the things you'd say after I did stuff and consider myself scolded. Max liked it because I started doing it at home too."  
  
Tim doubled over, a choking laugh escaping from his lips.  
  
"OK," Bart chirped, folding his arms over his chest. "Now you're just laughing AT me."  
  
"I'm laughing cause I'm happy, Bart. It's been a long time since I've been able to do that."  
  
"Oh." Bart had officially run out of things to say.  
  
They sat in silence, staring into the mid-day sun, letting it blind them. The contents of the bedroom threw long shadows against the carpet, a big gaping hole yet to be filled, something that needed to be said--a chasm which needed to be crossed and yet, somehow, could not.  
  
Finally, Bart worked up the courage to speak. "While we're being honest and stuff."  
  
Tim looked up at his friend. From the pensive tone the conversation now took, Tim knew whatever it was, it wasn't good.  
  
"I gotta tell you this because I feel really bad about it. It's kind of the reason I slowed down. I had to stop and think about it."  
  
"What, Bart? What happened?"  
  
"When we first heard? Well, I kinda wondered. If you could. You were real mad at Batman--"  
  
Tim almost fell off the bed. "YOU thought I. That I. BART!" He had no idea what to say, how to even react.  
  
Bart looked at the carpet guiltily. "I'm sorry. I had to stop. And when I did stop, I knew you didn't."  
  
"I. understand," Tim conceded finally. "I know it looked bad. Really bad. Dick and I started to wonder if we did it too. The DA used everything he could find and it looked so bad. Bruce tried to fix it in his press conference yesterday but I know it didn't. People are still gonna think bad things about us."  
  
His friend nodded. "I didn't even hear all that stuff yet when I got confused. It was like playing ping pong with yourself in your head, you know?"  
  
"Yeah, I know."  
  
Bart tried to cheer his friend a little. It was the least he could do, after being so brutally, pinfully honest. "Well, we'll give ya a pair of sun glasses, and you can be Alvin all the time. Then people won't think bad stuff." People didn't know anything about Alvin, right?  
  
Tim cringed. "Great. My dad'll love that."  
  
Bart grinned. He knew about all that identity stuff. Max never shut up about it. "He's all. 'gerr' like Max. Like his pants are too tight."  
  
"It's a universal parent thing."  
  
"So, um, like no Young Justice sleep-overs at your house, I'm betting. I mean. We destroyed half the house. That's a great first impression of us."  
  
Tim's lips pulled back into an evil smile. "Maybe I can talk Dad and Bruce into letting us have them at the Manor."  
  
Bart let out a yelp. "YEEPS! Spending the night with Batman?"  
  
"Well, he's home right now, getting better, but when he's working, he'll be out at night."  
  
"Oh, yeah. I forgot. But then it'd be like..be out before dawn."  
  
Tim nudged his friend. "You guys listen to Roy too much."  
  
Bart crossed his heart. "Dude, I was a Titan when he was the leader. I don't listen to Roy at ALL! The Bat's scary all by himself without Star Wars-type hype. He growled at me once when we here during No Man's Land. I needed a diaper."  
  
Tim rolled his eyes.  
  
"What if we broke something over his house? Then he'd growl at us, and who knows what that Alfred guy would do. And then where would we be?" We'd be getting growled at and murderized by someone who ruled the Bat.  
  
"I'm really glad you guys came here today."  
  
Bart grinned. "Heh. Your dad wasn't."  
  
"Yeah, well, he just found out about the Robin thing last night. It's like.. culture shock."  
  
"Great. Betcha seeing us on his door step did real good for him adjusting. Even outta uniform we're kinda obvious." Bart had asked about that-if maybe they shouldn't be showing up all obvious and stuff incase Tim's dad didn't know.-but in their rush to see Tim, no one'd really bothered to think about it real hard.  
  
Tim shook his head with a sad smile. So many things had changed, he was closer to Young Justice than he'd ever been, closer to Bart..He rose and walked to the window, pressing his palm against the warm glass. "It's been good to see you guys."  
  
Bart could sense a 'but'. Max was famous for them. Bart was getting very good at detecting them. Knowing better, he kept his peace.  
  
"It's good to be home. With friends. There was a time I thought I'd never.." he couldn't say it. Bart had been so honest with him, and yet Tim couldn't let go of that last bit of himself.  
  
"Never what?" NOW was the time to be a pest, Bart realized.  
  
"Be here," Tim said reluctantly, searching for the words. "Be happy. Ever again. They wanted to send me to Blackgate. For life. Forever. You don't know what it felt like-hearing that."  
  
Bart's heart sank, sensing his friend's pain. "But--but you knew you didn't do it." Unfortunately, one thing that Bart had recently learned was that things didn't always work out right for the heroes in the end.  
  
"That's what made it worse, Bart. I knew I didn't do it. But no one else did." Sometimes, thought Tim, he wished he could turn invisible like Suzy, and disappear into the glass, and be safe and hidden and never found again.  
  
"I--I knew you didn't. And Young Justice didn't." After much debate. He wouldn't trouble Tim with that. "It was like? a hole opened up and we fell in."  
  
Tim realized he wasn't going to dissipate into mist, and took his hand away from the glass. "That's how I felt too. And then..they started filling the hole up with dirt and I was suffocating."  
  
"I'm sorry," Bart said quietly. If there was anything he could have done to take it all away from his friend, he would have.  
  
"Bart, I thought my life was over when the jury convicted me. I even thought about.. wanted to, too.. If it hadn't been for Dick..Tim clenched his eyes shut and hugged the window frame. "No one knows this," he said quietly. "I wanted to kill myself, Bart."  
  
Bart somehow found the strength to stand, even though he couldn't catch his breath. He put a hand on his friend's shoulder, then grabbed Tim's arm with his other hand.  
  
"No one but you and Dick know this. Please don't say anything about this to anyone. Please."  
  
Bart nodded, not sure what to say. "I--I'm glad you didn't," he said finally. What would they have done without Robin?  
  
"I'm glad you don't know what it was like. I didn't want to live my life in prison, Bart. I couldn't do that. I put some of those guys there. I know what they're like. And I was so scared of what they were going to do to Dick. He's the only brother I've ever had and they said he was so bad.. That." Tim couldn't finish. Even after being released and redeemed, it was still too painful to talk about. "I don't know what's wrong with me. It's all over now. Why can't I get it out of my head?"  
  
Bart sat back on the bed. "I think some things don't go away, y'know?" Bart knew he'd never forget Carol or how much he hurt when he knew she wasn't coming back. Tim probably wouldn't forget this either.  
  
"I know. But I want this to go away. I want things back to normal. But things aren't normal. I missed the season opener of Wendy - I don't even know how she came back from the dead. I don't know who my friends are dating. There's so much I've LOST and can never get back. And it bothers me and it makes me angry."  
  
Bart nodded. "Y-you can't, I don't think." He knew that wasn't encouraging. But Bart hated when people lied to him to make him feel better. Max was mean, but at least he was honest.  
  
"And do you know that cop, the one who arrested us, wanted to arrest us yesterday? For the escape? Handcuffed us again and everything. I felt like it was starting again and that I'd never get home. And--and it was a nightmare. But I was too tired to fight, and too tired to wake up."  
  
Bart wrapped his arm around Tim's shoulder. For a change, he wasn't struggling for something to say. "Tomorrow we can fix the bathroom wall. Make some new memories. You know? And maybe if they're really good, and they're really ours..we'll have those and they'll be bigger than the bad ones." Max had said something like that to Bart once. He couldn't remember it word for word.  
  
In an awkward guy moment, Tim hugged Bart back. "Yeah, I hope so. I'd like to try. Thanks for everything."  
  
Bart gave a lop-sided grin. "You haven't seen the bathroom wall yet."  
  
"I'm sure it'll be ok."  
  
"I mean..the whole place is standing. That's what counts, right? Not the, uh--incidental property damage."  
  
"Yup. Exactly."  
  
"And, y'know, maybe we should knock down the wall. Have a real big bathroom. Sometimes ya gotta do that too. Knock down walls."  
  
"That's a thought. We could do some remodeling. I bet Bruce'd pay for it too--right now. We need to get him while he's in a generous mood."  
  
Bart bounced on the bed. "YOU ask. I'll stay outta scowling distance." Bart squinted at something, then turned back to his friend. "Y'know, there're feet at the bottom of your door."  
  
"Huh?" Tim looked to his door. Master detective, all right. "Oh no," he whispered. "How long do you think?"  
  
"Just noticed," Bart muttered.  
  
Tim took the initiative. "Uh, dad? Is that you?"  
  
Jack walked in, a little sheepish.  
  
Tim decided to play it cool. "Hi dad. S'up?" The day had gone horribly already with his dad. He didn't need more.  
  
His father shoved his hands into his pocket. "Does your friend want to stay for dinner?"  
  
Tim certainly hadn't seen that one coming. "Uh? Can you, Bart? Would Max mind?"  
  
Bart looked to both of them, and got a clue. "Lemmeask. Holdon." He zipped off in a blur and a rush of wind.  
  
Tim dug the toe of his tennis shoe into the carpet. "He doesn't see the necessity of the phone."  
  
"Well.. I suppose in his case, why would you?"  
  
"True."  
  
Finally, Jack sat down next to his son. The bed was getting a work out today. "We need to talk more."  
  
That wasn't what Tim wanted to hear. He had to know. "How much did you hear?"  
  
"We need to talk more," was all Jack said by way of reply.  
  
"I'm sorry, dad."  
  
"Tim, I'm just saying we need to talk more." He gave his son half a smile then patted his leg. "This life.. I guess it's less stressful than..well. What you've been through."  
  
The boy's eyes followed his father's hand up from his leg, and then met his father's gaze. "Yeah. I've done both. I know."  
  
"You have friends who care about you." He paused, thinking. "Even if they ARE destructive little monsters."  
  
Tim looked at his father hopefully. "Well, they can't help that. And being Robin's not going to be as stressful now that I don't have to lie to you. That was the worst part of it."  
  
Jack stared into his son's blue eyes for a moment. Tim had his resolve. There were some parts of him that were his mother's, and some parts of him that belonged to neither parent. He supposed those parts belonged to Bruce. "I guess you should go out then and try to help other people, so they don't end up in... painful places. Since you can."  
  
Tim nodded, his wide eyes staring with disbelief at his father. "I like helping people," he said slowly, almost in shock.  
  
"It would be like your friend using the phone when he can visit."  
  
"I.. I guess." He really couldn't comprehend what his father was saying-the way he was saying it.  
  
For the second time that day, Tim felt an arm around his shoulders. "Tim.. I'm proud of you."  
  
Tim was almost ready to start checking for pods. "You-- you are? REALLY?" When his father didn't show any signs of taking it back, he grinned.  
  
"You've come through so much, and yet--you're focused."  
  
Tim had to give a mirthful grin at that. "Good training. Keeps me focused."  
  
Suddenly, his father's face went unreasonable. "I'll have to talk to Bruce about that."  
  
Before Tim could ask what that meant, Impulse returned in a flash of red and white that blurred into pink. He looked--disoriented or something.  
  
"Hey, Bart?" Tim asked.  
  
"Sumbodyclonedadinosaur!Andit'sonewithbigteeth! Andit'sgoingtoWashington! AndSuperboyandWondergirlareaontheirway." Bart took a deep breath and looked from Tim to his dad. "Hi Tim's Dad." His redish brown hair flopped as he turned his head back to his friend. "Gottagonow,comeonRobin." Bart was gone in another blur.  
  
Tim smacked his forehead. "He forgot me! Dad, he forgot me! And I'm the leader!"  
  
Jack drew breath to say something consoling, but before he could, Impulse was back.  
  
"Justkidding! Hurryup!"  
  
Tim shook his head. "Dad?" Bart began tapping the carpet with his foot impatiently.  
  
"As much as it'd be nice to let Washington get stomped?" he shook his head, smiling at his son's anxious expression. "Get going."  
  
Tim dove for his closet and unlocked the number combination and padlock on the trunk in the bottom and began throwing on his Robin costume. Jack Drake watched admiringly as his son suited up, and he realized he had done so much to try and contain him, and like his friends, he was a force of nature that couldn't be subdued.  
  
  
  
Bart's foot tapping began to make the carpet smoke. "You really need Scotchguard, Mr. Drake."  
  
Jack's gaze went from his son to his son's friend. He scowled, and the boy who was little more than a teddy bear with super powers looked down and blushed.  
  
Just then, Tim clipped on his cape, adjusted his belt, and looked to his dad. "Come on, Bart."  
  
Jack smiled. "Get going. We'll keep dinner for you. Both of you."  
  
Without letting Tim give his thanks, Bart grabbed hold of his leader and sped off. A sharp wind blew through the house, and Jack just shook his head. When the air settled, he turned to Tim's night table, picked up the red car phone and dialed Bruce Wayne's number.  
  
THE END  
  
Ps, it's been a blast, ladies and gentlemen! Thanks for reading. 


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